Richmond Federal Reserve President Thomas Barkin stated that the latest U.S. CPI reading came in above the level he would have liked to see, but he still needs to evaluate more data before deciding what action to take at this month's policy meeting.

Speaking to reporters after delivering remarks at an event in Richmond, Barkin said: "Obviously, this reading was above the level I would have liked to see."

Barkin noted that the Fed's inflation target is based on the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index. He said: "We will get the Producer Price Index (PPI) on Thursday morning, and at that point I will have a clearer picture of what PCE might look like."

Barkin does not hold a monetary policy voting role this year. He stated that he will "pay attention to both demand and inflation."

Barkin said: "We certainly hope that inflation will follow a relatively rapid downward path. As for whether that will actually happen, we will have to wait and see."

When asked whether he believes further rate hikes are needed this year, Barkin said he does not want to "pre-judge the next meeting."

Barkin said: "I won't focus excessively on any single indicator. What I pay more attention to is whether overall inflation is moving in the right direction."